Left-Wing vs Right-Wing
Left-Wing or Right-Wing politics or the Left-Right political spectrum is a one dimensional spectrum used to classify political parties, political positions, or political ideologies.
To explain the difference between the two its easier to compare and contrast the positions taken by the far left and the far right. Be aware that many people’s political beliefs are on a continuum between left and right.
A brief way to describe the difference would be to say that left wingers believe the country is more important than the individual, and right wingers believe that the individual is more important than the country.
That analogy is semi-true. Left wingers believe that governments are a force for social justice and change, and so should intervene in individual’s lives to ensure social justice is achieved. Right wingers believe that governments are big and unwieldy and so should not interfere with people’s lives at all. They believe that government interference contravenes an individual’s right to liberty.
For this reason left wingers have traditionally favoured ‘big’ government while right wingers favoured ‘small’ government.
Right wingers believe in formal equality. They believe that everyone should be treated equally under the law and should be treated equally by government. Examples of right wing formal equality include equal pay for equal work and civil and political rights.
Left wingers believe in substantial equality. They argue that not every individual is the same and so government policy should be aimed to create substantial rather than just formal equality. Examples of left wing substantial equality include affirmative action and social and cultural rights.
Left-Wing to Right-Wing Spectrum
